West Finds Loyalty Pays In a Big Way

Jerry West--richer, rejuvenated and definitely not retired--is in limbo no more.

Even as he insisted that no deal has been completed, West on Wednesday confirmed that there is no longer any chance that he will be leaving his job as the Lakers’ executive vice president.

Sources close to the team said the 60-year-old executive has agreed to a four-year contract extension worth $3.5 million annually, tacked onto the final year of his existing deal, worth about $1.25 million a year.

The contract would make him one of the two or three highest-paid team executives who do not do double-duty as coaches.

“I’m a really loyal person,” West said. “I think for me to go somewhere else, or even consider going somewhere else, probably would be something where I couldn’t live with myself after the fact.

“When I consider everything that’s going on in my life, this has been a very valuable association for me here. . . . I just feel that my life has been with the Lakers. And I don’t know what my life would be like without the Lakers, to be candid.

“This is probably where I belong.”

The Riverside Press-Enterprise on Wednesday quoted two sources saying that West’s new deal was worth $3.5 million a year, a figure West on Wednesday termed “ridiculous.”

But another source on Wednesday said, “That figure might be too low.”

A Laker spokesman indicated a news conference about West’s status has tentatively been scheduled for today.

Last April, West spoke publicly about the emotional toil of running the Lakers, compared watching each game to “a trip to the dentist,” and suggested that he was leaning toward taking a break.

“If I was suicidal,” West said at an emotional news conference, “I’d be dead by now. . . .

“And I don’t think that is very good for me.”

Reports also surfaced that West and Laker owner Jerry Buss were at odds over the timing of about $2 million of a promised bonus payment.

Recently, though, several sources said that West and Buss had ironed out at least most of their differences, and that West would be returning for the final year of his contract.

What made him eager to negotiate an extension well into the 21st Century?

On Wednesday, West said that, thanks to the quiet of the NBA lockout, he has enjoyed a relatively calm summer while spending time in Europe during the European championships and a trip back home to West Virginia.

“It’s been personally a very introspective time for me,” West said. “It allowed me to really contemplate what I want to do in the future. I guess the bottom line is, most people think this was about money. It was never about that. It’s always been about me doing something I have a passion for. . . .

“I like to work. I particularly enjoy watching young players grow into great players--or watching them fail, if that’s case, the frustrations of winning and losing. Those are things that really weighed upon me. . . .

“I would only work for someone when I was able to make a commitment. I just feel we’re on the brink of seeing something really special here. With all the things you go through to try to build a team again, it’d be a shame not to kind of reap the benefits of that.”

West said he and Buss have had discussions throughout the summer about his status. West also did not deny that he had been approached by other organizations--not in the NBA--and one source said he had rejected offers that were well in excess of $3 million per year.

“I was very candid with him about my concerns, concerns about whether this is something I want to continue to do,” West said. “We started talking about some things and I think we’re getting close to where maybe this will be something we’ll both be happy with.”

When West’s status was up in the air, both Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant--potential free-agents at the end of the 1998-99 season--indicated that they would seriously consider leaving a Laker team that was without West.

One source close to the situation said that Bryant made a point to call Buss himself before the lockout to reiterate his support for West.

On Wednesday, Leonard Armato, O’Neal’s agent, said the center was relieved to hear that West was staying.

“I think this is a wonderful step in creating a solid foundation for the Lakers’ future, and Shaquille is obviously delighted by this news,” Armato said. “Jerry West is very important to him.